Hedgehog and Bat
by SonicLover
Summary: Pure chance brought Amy and Rouge together. Now they're even more together than either would like. What will happen?
1. The Ruby Necklace

Hedgehog and Bat

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Author's note: I've kinda put "Red and Purple" on hold for now. I've had this idea rattling around in my head for a few days now, though, and you wouldn't believe how much of a headache all that rattling gives me.

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Chapter 1: The Ruby Necklace

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It was rather late, and the sky was dark. Rain was pouring down so hard, nobody dared go outside. The only person who did not have a roof over her head was one hedgehog girl named Amy Rose, who was taking shelter under a tree.

"Oh, man," Amy said to herself. "I never should have gone shopping this late. If that super-special ruby necklace hadn't been on sale, in fact, I never would've left my apartment at all. I wish I'd brought an umbrella."

Lightning struck, and Amy decided she shouldn't stay put for much longer. She decided to take refuge in the nearest building, which happened to be Tails' lab.

As Amy wrung out her clothes, she casually looked around. All kinds of mechanical devices riddled the room, large and small. It was too complicated for Amy to even dare to comprehend. However, she noticed someone hiding in the rafters.

Alerted by the unknown presence, Amy took a defensive pose. "Who goes there? Show yourself, whoever you are up there!"

The figure dropped to the floor, landing somewhat stylishly, and Amy recognized her in an instant. "Rouge! What did you come here for?"

Rouge folded her arms. "Amy Rose, from apartment 29 in Central City. I followed you back here after you bought that ruby necklace. You know how much I like valuable jewels, and I find that necklace particularly inviting. Now hand it over before I have to get violent!"

"I will not hand over the necklace!" Amy shot back. "It's a gift for Sonic, and I'm not going to give it up to the likes of you!"

"So be it!" Rouge finished, opening her wings. In response, Amy withdrew her hammer from her pocket and brandished it.

Amy made the first move and jumped into the air, attempting to bring her hammer right down on Rouge's head. Rouge, however, did a quick backflip, kicking said hammer out of Amy's hands and across the room.

"By the way, Amy," Rouge asked casually, "how DO you carry such a large hammer in such a small pocket?"

Not paying attention to Rouge's question, Amy dashed across the room and seized her hammer in preparation for a counterattack. She didn't get the chance, as Rouge had snuck up behind her and now attempted to grab her and choke her.

"Give me the necklace!" Rouge commanded.

"I won't!" Amy screamed, prying herself loose and dashing across the room to try to get away. The lab was a little dark, so Amy collided with the wall and fell to the floor.

Rouge now had Amy cornered. "Amy, if you hand over the necklace now, I'll let you go."

Amy, however, was not in a necklace-handing-over mood. Realizing that the light switch was within arm's reach, she reached up and flipped on the lights, temporarily blinding Rouge, who was more accustomed to darkness.

This opportunity was not one Amy was about to pass up. She ran up and hammered Rouge with an underhand swing, sending her flying. Recovering in mid-air, Rouge turned herself and landed on the wall, then jumped off and hovered several yards above the ground.

"You can't hit what you can't reach," Rouge taunted Amy. "Give up the necklace!"

Still not intending to heed Rouge's command, Amy swung her hammer around and threw it, striking Rouge directly and knocking her to the ground.

Amy approached Rouge, who was lying on the floor and rather dazed. "All right," the hedgehog girl said, "any last words, Rouge?"

"Yes," Rouge replied. "For the fifth time, give me the necklace!"

In a surprise move, Rouge kicked Amy in the chest, knocking her to the ground. Rouge also took something out of her pocket and threw it on the floor next to Amy.

Upon getting up, Amy noticed the object, which resembled a marble. She didn't realize what it was until it was too late, as the thing suddenly released a cloud of gas that filled the immediate area. Rouge was a distance away, so she was unaffected.

When the gas cleared, Amy was out like a light. Rouge flew down and inspected her. _Good old sleeping gas capsules,_ Rouge thought to herself. _Useful for subduing security guards, police officers, and annoying pink hedgehogs._

Rouge stood up. _Amy will be out for a few hours. Now to get that necklace. I can't frisk Amy here; someone might notice. I'd better take her back to the club first. Now what's the fastest way back?_

Looking around, Rouge noticed a booth marked "TELE-TRANSPORTER". Evidently, Tails had invented it in his spare time. A clipboard on a nearby table explained how to use it.

**TELE-TRANSPORTER OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS**

Step 1: Turn on the tele-transporter by pressing the white button.

Locating the white button in question, Rouge pressed it, and the machine hummed to life.

**Step 2: Once the tele-transporter is on, choose the desired destination using the touch-screen control panel. Once a destination is selected, a green light will come on.**

Rouge looked over her shoulder, and noticed a screen displaying a map of the area. She touched the screen with her finger, focusing on the street outside Club Rouge, until a light on the side of the machine turned green.

**Step 3: Once the green light is on, have the passenger enter the booth and stay inside.**

As prompted by these instructions, Rouge picked up Amy and deposited her inside the booth. She would get in herself as soon as she read the rest.

**Step 4: Once the passenger is inside, pull the blue handle right next to the booth to start the process. The rest is automatic.**

Reading this, Rouge dropped the clipboard, stood inside the booth with Amy, and reached out and gave the handle a tug. She quickly withdrew her hand as an energy field enveloped both females. With a flash of light, they both disappeared.

It doesn't look good for Amy, does it? Well, it gets worse. Rouge had not read the clipboard all the way down, and if she had, she might have noticed a warning printed at the bottom.

**WARNING: It is only safe for one passenger to use the tele-transporter at a time. If two passengers try to tele-transport in one go, the process may fuse them into one being.**

Uh-oh. And Amy and Rouge were both in there. I have a bad feeling about this.

-

I always enjoy a cliffhanger. Well, almost always. Did you notice how the narrator got a little character at the end? I enjoy using that technique. 


	2. Morning

Hedgehog and Bat

Author's note: Wow, this story is liked already. I guess it wouldn't hurt to continue.

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Chapter 2: Morning

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Somewhere in the alleys of Central City, a shady figure guarded the entrance to a club. Just behind him, several posters were stuck on the walls. One poster in particular read "CLUB ROUGE". This was the name of the club down the stairs.

Not far away, just around the corner, there was a flash of light and a rather odd-looking character appeared out of nowhere and landed on the ground. She lay on the ground unconscious for a moment before waking up.

Her head was like Amy's, but with Rouge's ears. From her neck down to her waist, she was Rouge, complete with wings and breasts. Below the waist, she was Amy, except for her legs and feet, which were Rouge's. All in all, she was a slightly curious sight.

She got to her feet. "Oh, my head," she moaned in a voice that was halfway between Amy's voice and Rouge's. "What happened?"

-

Dawn had just arrived in Emerald Town. Tails woke up early. "Oh… another beautiful day. Man, it rained hard last night. I'll go get Sonic, then do my daily lab maintenance."

Sonic was waiting at the beach when Tails arrived. "Hi, Tails," the former greeted the latter. "You interested in going exploring at Holy Summit this morning?"

"I just woke up, Sonic," Tails responded. "Maybe a little later. I've got a little work to do at my lab. You can come with me, though."

-

The aforementioned "fusion" of Amy and Rouge- I'll call her "Rosebat" herein so I won't have to keep referring to her so vaguely- approached the entrance to Club Rouge, where the guard was waiting patiently.

"Hello, Max," Rosebat greeted the guard in question.

"Howdy, uh, whatever your name is," Max replied. "Hey, how'd you know what my name was?"

Rosebat did not respond.

"Never mind," Max interrupted himself. "What's the password?"

Instead of giving an oral response like they do in film noir movies, Rosebat made a flirtatious pose and winked affectionately. Max nearly fainted. "Yep, that's the password. Go on in."

As Rosebat began down the stairs, her Amy side began to show through. "Whoa, this is a little creepy," she said to herself. "And that guy guarding the door seemed pretty shady. I wonder if it's safe to come down here. Nah, it has to be safe. I come here all the time."

Entering a door, Rosebat sat down at Rouge's usual table. Due to a morning shift change, Max walked by at that moment, noticed Rosebat, and approached her.

"Excuse me, dame," Max began, "but that's Rouge's spot. Only Rouge sits there."

"I **am** Rouge," Rosebat protested. "No, wait, I'm Amy. Or am I …? No, wait, I'm…"

This bit of confusion left Max rather mixed up. "Now wait a minute! Either you're Amy or you're Rouge, which one is it?"

Rosebat finally got out an answer. "I'm- I'm both. I don't know how it happened, but somehow the both of us got combined into one."

Max nodded. "Judging by your appearance, that just might be believable. Do you remember what happened?"

-

Tails opened the door into his lab, with Sonic in tow. "Say, Tails," Sonic commented, "did you leave the lights on all night?"

"I doubt it," Tails replied, even though the lights were obviously on. "Maybe someone was here last night. Let's look around."

As Sonic and Tails inspected the lab, Tails was the first to notice that the tele-transporter had been left on. "Hey, Sonic!" Tails called out. "Come over here!"

Not only was the tele-transporter on, it turned out, but the destination was set to the alleys outside Club Rouge. A quick fingerprint analysis of the touch screen revealed that Rouge had indeed been the last one to use it.

"So Rouge was here," Sonic confirmed. "Tails, do you think we should go to that location and see if we can find some kind of clue about what happened here?"

"Absolutely," Tails agreed. "You go first."

-

I think my chapters are getting better. This one's divided into four sections. Comments? 


	3. More Investigation

Hedgehog and Bat

Author's note: My lord, I'm getting lazy. Maybe I should get out more. Nah.

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Chapter 3: More Investigation

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Central City, the city area just east of Emerald Town, was a bustling metropolis. Cars and people were constantly on the move, and Sonic and Tails had a hard time getting through traffic of both kinds.

"MR. SONIC!"

Hearing a familiar voice call out, Tails and Sonic turned their attention to the apartment complex where Amy and Cream shared a room. Cream the Rabbit was standing just outside, and she looked anxious.

"Cream!" Tails yelled. "You look awfully worried. Did something happen?"

Sonic and Tails joined with Cream in the entryway. "Amy's been missing," Cream explained. "She went out last night to do some shopping, and she hasn't come back."

"What was she going to buy?" Sonic inquired.

"She made me promise not to tell," Cream explained. "She just said it was something for you, Sonic."

Tails nodded. "Hm. Rouge was in my lab last night, and she did something with the tele-transporter. We're on our way to investigate. Maybe Amy's disappearance is connected to it somehow. Want to come with us, Cream?"

Cream agreed. "Well, okay. Oh, Amy, where are you?"

-

Rosebat had already left Club Rouge, and she had by now gone out of the city and approached Knuckles' place. If anyone would understand her predicament, she figured, he would.

Crossing the bridge, Rosebat knocked on the wall. "Knuckles? Knuckles, are you in?"

Knuckles was in, and he was immediately out. "Yeah, I'm in. Whaddya want? I'm busy polishing the Master Emerald."

The mention of the Master Emerald diverted the Rouge side of Rosebat, but not as much the Amy side, so Rosebat was left in confusion for a moment. "I- well- I want- give me- could you- I mean- how would-"

Needless to say, Knuckles' patience ran out quite quickly. "Spit it out, ya freak, I don't have all day."

Freak! Neither side of Rosebat would have been able to retain self-control after that insult. With a yell, Rosebat displayed Amy's hammer, and attempted to slam the echidna over the head with it. Knuckles simply drove the hammer back with an uppercut punch.

Taking the offensive, Knuckles lunged back and jumped into the air, fists first, in an attempt to slam Rosebat. But Rosebat was ready, and used a backward somersault to slip under the attack and give the echidna a double kick in the chest.

Knuckles crashed into the ground, recovered quickly, and swapped tactics. This time, he jumped up and burrowed into the ground. A moment later, he reached out from underground and attempted to seize Rosebat's ankle.

Rosebat, however, had used her bat wings to hover a few feet above the ground, and Knuckles' hand grabbed empty air. She took this opportunity to drop down and stomp on Knuckles' wrist. The battle went on for a while after that.

-

"According to the tele-transporter's settings," Tails explained, "whoever used it was dropped off right here."

Sonic nodded. "We'd better ask around for information about our mysteries. Maybe we'll find something."

As Sonic, Cream and Tails approached the nearest building, a man stopped them. "Stop! What's the password?"

"Never mind the password," Tails interjected. "Have you seen a flirtatious bat girl with purple wings and blue eyelids around here?"

"Or a pink hedgehog girl wearing a red dress with white trim?" Sonic added.

The man thought about it for a moment, then spoke. "Wait, I know what you're talking about. The two dames you're talking about are called Rouge and Amy, right?"

Cream was practically filled with excitement. "You've seen them?"

"Sort of," the man explained. "Some female came here last night who looked like, er… well, let's just say that if Amy and Rouge did that dance from that Japanese cartoon, the female who was here would be the result. Seriously, she looked like those two fused together."

"Tell us more," Tails begged.

"I'm afraid I don't know any more than that. I wasn't on duty that night. Max was. He's just inside. Give me the password, and I'll let you by."

The three animals didn't know the password, so they retreated. "I guess we're stuck," Cream sighed.

"Maybe we're not," Tails figured. By now he had been able to put two and two together. He had just remembered that the tele-transporter was a prototype that could not safely teleport more than one person at a time. In fact, it could fuse multiple occupants into one being.

"Amy and Rouge were both at my lab last night," Tails explained. "It was raining, so Amy probably went in for shelter. Then, Rouge subdued her and programmed the tele-transporter to take them both to her club. That's why only Rouge's fingerprints were on the control panel."

Sonic snapped his fingers. "Tails, you're a genius."

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That's a wrap, folks. Stay tuned for the next chapter! 


	4. Meanwhile

Hedgehog and Bat

Author's note: Now that I've got some of my regular reviewers to review this story, I guess it wouldn't hurt to continue it.

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Chapter 4: Meanwhile

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The air of Holy Summit was crisp and clear, and it was getting a little cold out. Not that Knuckles and Rosebat noticed; they were in the middle of a fight. Now, though, they were both a little worn out.

"Okay, you got a couple hits in, I'll give you that," Knuckles panted. "You're a pretty good fighter. You know, you look familiar to me. Sort of like that bat girl who's always after the Master Emerald… or the hedgehog girl who's always after Sonic…"

"Rouge and Amy?" Rosebat confirmed. "That's… well, there's a reason for that. Just sit down and listen, and I'll explain everything."

"Sit down and listen" was something Knuckles rarely bothered to do, but he complied as Rosebat began to explain everything.

-

Back in Emerald Town, Sonic, Tails and Cream had just left the alleyway and were on their way back to Tails' lab. It was terribly windy, and Tails' tails flapped like flags.

PAF! A page from a newspaper blew right into Sonic's face. As he peeled it off, an ad printed on the page caught his attention. "Hey, you two," Sonic called out, "take a look at this."

"Triple-treat super-special ruby necklace," Tails read. "The perfect gift for your loved one."

Sonic whistled as he looked at the picture. "I bet Rouge would love to get her mitts on one of those. According to this, they were on sale last night."

Hearing this, Tails snapped his fingers. "Wait a minute! Cream, is this necklace the 'gift for Sonic' that Amy was going to buy last night?"

"She made me promise not to tell," Cream repeated.

"When Amy made you promise not to tell," Sonic retorted, "do you think she considered the possibility of getting subdued by and promptly fused with Rouge the Bat?"

Cream shook her head. "Well… okay, I guess I can tell you. Yes, I believe this is what she was going to buy."

"Yes, that'd make sense," Tails figured, "but still… a necklace? Sonic, you don't wear jewelry, do you?"

"No, I don't," Sonic responded, "but you know Amy. She's probably so shortsighted she wouldn't even care. Er… forget I said that, Cream."

"It's okay, Mr. Sonic," Cream replied. "Heaven knows what Amy would've done if she'd heard that, though."

Sonic winced at being called "Mr. Sonic" by Cream once again, but the three of them continued on their way.

-

Knuckles folded his arms. "Now let me get this straight. The two of you got combined when you used Tails' tele-whatever, and now you can't get yourself separated again?"

"That's right," Rosebat confirmed.

"Well, it all sounds like hooey to me. I am not buying that ridiculous fable until I get some proof."

"Proof?"

"Yes, proof. See that rock over there? Give it an Amy Love Hammer strike."

This sounded simple to Rosebat, so she approached the rock, drew Amy's hammer, and pulled off a perfect Love Hammer swing attack. The rock cracked.

Knuckles nodded. "All right. Now hit it again, this time with Rouge's Charlie Kick."

Rosebat put away the hammer in response to this, and spun around with a Charlie Kick, showing off Rouge's skill and prowess. The second strike to the rock caused it to split in two.

"All right, I'm convinced," Knuckles finally said. Being mostly brawn, Knuckles had an eye for fighting moves, and he knew these moves when he saw them. They were definitely the moves of Amy Rose and Rouge the Bat.

-

Meanwhile, in a remote base which had recently been set up inside an inactive volcano, a bald man with a mustache was working on something. There was no question that this was something big, something devastating, something that Emerald Town would dread.

At that moment, a scout robot entered the room. "Dr. Eggman! Robot 943 reporting! I am back from my surveillance!"

Dr. Eggman turned. "Oh, so you are? You weren't supposed to be back for another hour!"

The robot who'd just spoke now seemed a little flustered. "Yes, I know… my apologies, Dr.… but I witnessed something that I think you should be aware of."

Robot 943 plugged itself into the monitor and showed a surveillance tape of Rosebat fighting Knuckles. "The winged character seems to be a hybrid of subject 'Amy' and subject 'Rouge'," it explained. "You can see how it uses maneuvers exclusive to both."

"Ah, I see," Dr. Eggman figured. "Keep rolling."

As the tape continued, the doctor listened to Rosebat explaining the whole situation to Knuckles. "Show no more!" he interrupted as the explanation finished. "This is a very interesting prospect. Upload that tape, then go back and surveil that character. I have a feeling."

These orders were obediently followed as Robot 943 uploaded the tape file onto Dr. Eggman's main computer, then left the base. Stopping his work for a moment, Eggman chuckled evilly.

-

I bet you were wondering when he'd come into all this, weren't you? Well, that's all for this chapter. 


	5. A Nasty Surprise

Hedgehog and Bat

Author's note: I just conferred with Nail Strafer about what's a plot and what isn't. Turns out I needn't have worried. Next chapter!

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Chapter 5: A Nasty Surprise (wow, didn't begin with M that time!)

* * *

"Let's go through this one more time, from the beginning," Cream requested. "I'm still not sure I understand."

It was almost noon at Emerald Town. Sonic, Tails, and Cream had left Central City and returned to Tails' lab to plan their next course of action. They were sitting at a folding table Tails had set up in the middle of the room.

"All right," Tails agreed. "We've figured out that last night, Amy bought the ruby necklace depicted in the ad here (he pointed at the newspaper sheet as he spoke) and was on her way back home when the rain picked up."

"Amy took shelter in the nearest building," Sonic explained, "and it turned out to be this lab. You can still see her muddy footsteps as she came in. What she didn't know was that Rouge was following her."

"Rouge and Amy got into a fight," Tails added. "There are still signs of a tussle around the room, like the way that wall over there is scratched a bit. Rouge knocked Amy out somehow and decided to take her back to the club to frisk her for the necklace."

"What was the quickest way back?" Sonic picked up his cue. "It was Tails' tele-transporter, and there was a clipboard on the table over there explaining how to use it. You can see that it was dropped there somewhat hurriedly; it's lying in a crooked position."

"Looking over the clipboard, Rouge set up the tele-transporter to take both of them back to the club. The problem was, she'd overlooked the warning noted at the bottom, which warned against two or more passengers using the tele-transporter at once," Tails clarified.

"Because if they did," Sonic finished, "a bug in the tele-transporter could cause them to be fused into one. And that's exactly what happened, if that witness's description is believable. Well, that's the summary. Understand now, Cream?"

Cream thought about it for a moment. "Okay, I think I understand now. Wow, you two are like detectives. I guess we should find Amy or Rouge or whatever she is now."

"Now you're catching on," Tails cheered. "Let's ask Knuckles if he's seen anyone."

The decision made, Sonic and Cream began to leave the lab. Tails tried to follow, but he'd accidentally set up the folding table on top of his twin tails. When he tried to get up, the table tipped over with a resounding CRASH!

"Don't worry about it," Sonic assured his best friend. "You can take care of it after we return. Come on, let's go."

* * *

"I don't understand why you came to me," Knuckles interjected. "I mean, I know you need someone to talk to, but I really don't know much about this fusion stuff. Why me, of all people?"

Rosebat sighed. "I really don't know. I guess my Rouge side was tempted by the Master Emerald, and I was kind of drawn here."

"Looks like you've got some self-control now," Knuckles commented. "I wish I could control myself like that. The slightest thing ticks me off, and I want to punch someone's head off."

Before Rosebat could respond, a yell pierced the air. "Sonic! Cream! Look, it's Amy and Rouge!"

Knuckles stood up. "Tails? Sonic? What are they doing here?"

Blue, yellow and pastel orange gathered around Knuckles and Rosebat. "Gee," Sonic commented upon examining Rosebat, "I didn't picture you this way when I heard that guard's description of you. I thought your face would be a little more white."

"That must be pretty awkward, being fused like that," Cream added.

"It was at first," Rosebat explained, "but after a while I got used to it. Sometimes I conflict with myself, though."

Tails folded his arms. "Well, you need to come back to the lab with us, Amy or Rouge or whoever I'm speaking to right now. I think I can get you fixed. It should only take a-"

BOOM! A small tennis-ball-looking thing flew into the air and landed right in the middle of the crowd of five (or six, depending on how you count Rosebat). Knuckles picked it up and examined it.

"What is it?" Sonic asked.

Tails gasped. "Knuckles! Put it down! That's a-"

Interrupted once again, Tails was helpless to stop the capsule as it suddenly let loose a cloud of sleeping gas. Knuckles fainted, followed by Sonic and Cream. Tails was the fourth to fall, having recognized the thing too late.

"Not… again…" Rosebat moaned, being the last one down.

After everyone was down, a robot approached the group and examined them to make sure they were all down. "All five subjects are out of commission," the robot radioed to its master. "Your orders, Dr. Eggman?"

"Bring all of them back to the base," the response came. "And make sure the hybrid is placed in the examination chamber!"

* * *

So there IS a plot. Stay tuned to find out what happens to our protagonists! 


	6. Jeh Jeh Rocket

Hedgehog and Bat

Author's note: Since "Red and Purple" will be much longer than this story, it only makes sense that I devote more attention to it. Can't ignore this story, though.

* * *

Chapter 6: Jeh Jeh Rocket

* * *

The inside of an inactive volcano was the perfect place for Dr. Eggman's secret base. It would be difficult to climb such a high volcano, and if the climb wouldn't scare you off, the heat certainly would.

Inside the base, Sonic, Tails, Knuckles and Cream were trapped in four separate holding cells, all made of the finest metals and sturdy enough to keep the wildest beast contained.

Rosebat, meanwhile, was trapped in a glass tube across the room. This tube served as the testing chamber, and even though it had a decent air supply, Rosebat was not happy with being inside it.

"Give her a scan," Dr. Eggman ordered the nearest robot, which rushed to a control panel and entered a special code. A ring of light passed over Rosebat, moving up and down as it encircled her body.

After a few minutes, a few sheets of paper were dumped out of the nearby printer. Dr. Eggman picked them up and looked over them. "Interesting," he said to himself at a few points.

When he was finished, Eggman put the papers down. "Amazing," he said out loud. "Rouge and Amy have been fused together so perfectly. I would expect some discomfort, but according to the analysis, there are apparently no such 'bugs' at all!"

Eggman then turned to face Rosebat. "How do you do it, lady? How do you control and live with your own fused body so naturally?"

Rosebat remained silent. Her teeth were gritted with anger and frustration, an expression which was a mix of Amy getting turned down by Sonic for the umpteenth time, and Rouge discovering that the jewel she'd been seeking for hours had been taken by someone else.

Fueled by her emotions, Rosebat brandished Amy's hammer and let loose a powerful swing, shattering the glass tube into pieces with the impact. Eggman jumped back immediately, and even Sonic and company flinched.

"GET HER!" Eggman ordered, and robots came pouring in from all sides of the base. Rosebat hammered some, karate-kicked others, and soon had herself surrounded with scrap metal.

About six minutes and twenty dozen robots later, Rosebat was beginning to tire out. She had not expected there to be so many robots around, and there were still fifty or so left. There was no question about it: she was in trouble.

Dr. Eggman laughed out loud. "Give up now! You're all out of tricks! Your skills are nothing more than the skills of Amy and Rouge shuffled together! You have nothing new at all! You are far too predictable to come out victorious!"

This remark infuriated Rosebat even more. With one swift motion, she opened her bat wings and whirled up into the air, hovering for a moment in the middle of the air as the robots looked on helplessly.

Then came the finisher. In one fell swoop, Rosebat held Amy's hammer straight out and went into a Drill Drive, slamming the ground feet-first as she spun. The added force supplied by the hammer knocked out the nearest few robots, and the rest followed quickly.

Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Cream all applauded from their cells. It was now Eggman's turn to be angry. His robots had all been wrecked, the test chamber was ruined, and the floor had been severely dented by that last attack (which Sonic later christened the "Hammer Drive").

"Blast!" the doctor groaned, pounding his fist on the control panel. "Why do these things always happen to me? Why can't something RIGHT happen for a change? The only thing I need now is for the volcano to erupt!"

As if prompted by a stage cue, the whole base suddenly started to shake and vibrate. "I hope that was my stomach," Eggman said to himself, even though he knew that couldn't be it.

It turned out that the last blow to the ground had caused a pipe to rupture, creating a chain reaction that had sent explosions down into the volcano and reactivated the thing. It was now about to blow its top, and the base would go with it!

Eggman picked up an intercom speaker. "Attention all robots! Emergency evacuation! Evacuate the base immediately! Attempt to salvage nothing! I repeat, evacuate the base immediately! Attempt to salvage nothing!"

Those words said, Eggman leaped into his hovercraft and sped off, leaving Rosebat standing in the middle of the room. Her attention quickly fell on a key ring that hung on the wall opposite the cells. She immediately nabbed it and looked through the keys.

Quickly locating the key that opened the cells, Rosebat rushed over and undid the locks one by one. "Come on!" Sonic yelled once everyone was free. "Let's blow this joint before it blows itself!"

* * *

I'm not gonna go through the details of how Sonic and co. escape from the base. That tactic practically ruined "A Boundary Crossed.

At the same time, though, I'm a little disappointed with the length of this chapter. Maybe I'll go back and see if I can't lengthen it a little. Nah, I almost never do that. 


End file.
